Enzo Maresca names team he wants Chelsea to face in UEFA Conference League final
The Blues are huge favourites to land the trophy.
Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca has revealed which team he would rather take on in the final of this season’s UEFA Conference League.
The Blues cruised past Swedish side Djurgårdens IF 4-1 away from home in the first leg of their semi-final clash and look set to easily progress.
Should they reach the final as expected, the west Londoners will face Spanish side Real Betis or Italian team Fiorentina in Wrocław on May 28.
Real Betis, managed by former Manchester City and West Ham boss Manuel Pellegrini, beat Fiorentina 2-1 in Spain in their first leg showdown.
With Fiorentina only one goal behind – and at home in the second leg – it is unclear which team Chelsea will take on in the Conference League final.
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In his pre-match press conference ahead of the semi-final second leg against Djurgårdens IF at Stamford Bridge, Maresca was asked if he’d rather next face Real Betis or Fiorentina and strongly hinted the former.
‘To be honest, I said many times that I consider Manuel Pellegrini one of my references, one of my professional dads because I worked with him for four years, two as a player, two as a coach,’ Maresca said.
‘I spoke with him a lot. When I have some doubts I call him to try to solve my [problems]. I would be happy for Manuel Pellegrini.
‘At the same time Fiorentina is an Italian club, I’m from Italy. I played one season as a player with Fiorentina but in this moment for us it’s [about] tomorrow’s game and then we see the other one.’
Maresca believes Chelsea ‘are back’ if they manage to get their hands on the Conference League trophy this term.
The Conference League is the third-most prestigious European club competition – below the Europa League and Champions League – and Chelsea have been heavy favourites to be crowned champions all season.
Should Chelsea land the Conference League title, which was only introduced in the 2021-22 season, they’d become the first team to win all three European club competitions and it’d be their debut trophy under their owners, BlueCo, who replaced Roman Abramovich three years ago.
It would also see Chelsea automatically qualify for the following season’s Europa League if they do not finish in the top five of the Premier League, which would instead earn qualification for the Champions League.
‘For me winning a trophy this season, the Conference League trophy is a statement that you can say ‘Chelsea are back’ because first of all you win a trophy,’ Maresca added.
‘If [Real] Madrid or different clubs don’t play Conference it’s because they didn’t deserve to play Conference.
‘If we play Conference it’s because it’s where we are so we need to start from there. We are playing Conference.
‘If you play Conference you cannot win the Champions League, if you play Conference you cannot win the Europa League, if you play Conference the only trophy you can win is Conference.
‘We’re going to try our best tomorrow to reach the final and then to win the trophy. As I said from there I think it’s a good starting point to start to build a winning mentality and win games and trophies.’
